BFS en France

Pâques en famille

2008-03-25T16:15:00.000-07:00

Easter weekend was spent en famille! This is what it looked like at Hôtel de la Brèche de Roland! There was of course tons of chocolat, and l'agneau pascal (the paschal lamb)... There also was une tempête de neige (a snow storm)....

Gèdre, Millaris, la centrale hydroélectrique de Pragneres

2008-03-25T15:45:00.000-07:00

After the morning at the Parc National and the pique-nique, we go down to Gèdre and Millaris, which houses l' Office du Tourisme and a very interesting interactive présentation de la culture, l'histoire and la géographie de la région.
We end the day at la Centrale Hydroélectrique de Pragnères, which is the largest in Europe, and produces électricité through processing the water of the Gave de Gavarnie, the local river. When it was built in the 1950's, it was the largest construction site ever, with 20,000 workers in permanence there for 8 years! They had to built a little city, with cement factories for the building of the dam, and housing for all the workers! In France, hydroélectricity represents 20% of all electricity produced, with the remaining 80% coming from nuclear plants. The plant at Pragneres can start producing electricity within 3 minutes, where a nuclear plant takes about three hours! It is also green energy, and the whole valley, because in part of the Unesco designation, is completely green.

Gavarnie, la Maison du Parc National des Pyrénées

2008-03-25T15:15:00.000-07:00

It is Friday morning (my blog was abandoned during the Easter weekend, which we spent with our families, and I confess I felt like doing nothing, and just visiting with my mother and my sister Odile and her children!). We are at Gavarnie, at la Maison du Parc National des Pyrénées, where we see a very interesting film about the Parc National and the role it, and the gardes forestiers have to play in the Vallée des Toys, la vallée de Gavarnie-Luz.
The gardes, who are in some ways similar to rangers, have three principal tasks in the Parc: policing, maintaining, and communicating. They police by making sure the rules of the Parcs Nationaux are upheld by all the visitors, they maintain by working on the infrastructure of the Parc, but also by cataloging, making inventory of the flora and fauna of the Parc, which helps them preserve the balance in the eco-system of the Parc, and they communicate by giving specific tours of the Parc according to the seasons and what the groups wish to experience, by teaching classes and working with visitors and all the local schools.
We were amazed to see that the gardes really are scientists, each with specific missions in the Parc, and that they take notes and make reports which are then sent to the central command in Tarbes. They are complete athletes who are mountain-climbing to reach difficult areas where they need to count an endangered species of flowers noticed growing high on a cliff, or skiing to reach an indigenous species of bird and observe them nesting etc...The local collège (middle school) has a programme which sends students to work with the gardes for a few weeks.
After this programme très intéressant, we have a pique-nique in a meadow near Gavarnie's church. In the cemetery near the church are buried or honored with a plaque all the most famous mountain climbers of the Pyrénées, who are called Pyrénéistes, and not Alpinistes!

La Ferme des Cascades

2008-03-22T08:37:00.000-07:00

After le pique-nique à Gavarnie, we take the bus back to Luz and la Ferme des Cascades (the Waterfalls Farm), where Duncan's host family will give us a tour, and explain to us the traditional lifestyle of shepherds in the mountains. Monsieur Gabriel and his British wife raise les moutons (sheep), les chèvres (goats) and les vaches (cows) in the ancestral farm. It is a dairy farm (une ferme laitière) which produces mostly butter, cheeses, and a specialty of goat's milk yogurt. We are enchanted with the animals, and Monsieur Gabriel's explanations on the functioning of his "green" farm, where the roof of the barn where goats and sheep stay in the winter is solar-powered, and the local brook provides enough electricity to run the milking machines and give warmth at night! The cheeses are not pasteurized (lucky for us cheese amateurs....waving to Duncan's parents who are awaiting their fromage with trepidation!). We learn about good and bad bacteria, and how the feed of the animals is a crucial element in the cycle of milk to cheese production, about rennet, about the difference between good hygiene and aseptic conditions....
During our visit, a baby goat is born, and we are entranced by the little one, vigorously licked by the mother, and who is already on its tiny hooves and suckling.....Some lambs were born that morning, and already gambol around the mothers.. Everywhere we turn there is a lesson, always unexpected, and always breathtaking!
In the summer months, for about six months, the animals are brought to les hauts plateaux above the line of the forest, and they stay there in the good mountain air, with plenty of tender grass to eat, until the shepherds come back to get them in November...There are stone barns up there for the shepherds and the visits of the families now and then. This ancient tradition is still honored by all the "éleveurs", the farmers who raise dairy animals. It is called transhumance.

Le Cirque de Gavarnie

2008-03-22T07:12:00.000-07:00

Le Cirque de Gavarnie is on the registry of world sites protected by UNESCO. It is the site of a magnificent glacier, with the highest cascade (waterfall) in Europe, frozen in winter (420 m high - roughly 1,280 feet)! We had a memorable hike with Bernard, guide de montagne professionnel, followed by a lovely pique-nique on a promontory facing le Cirque. The absence of fresh snow did not allow us to go snoeshoeing (faire des raquettes), but our disappointment was soon assuaged by la beauté du site, the brisk walk in the wonderful mountain air, and some of the légendes, histoires, et explications sur la géographie, la géologie, la botanique et la biologie our guide Bernard shared with us.
We saw lovely trouts in the torrent (le Gave de Gavarnie), some vultures indigenous to the Pyrénées, and several local flowers heralding the spring (rhododendrons, primevères, hellébores or Roses de Noël...) Bernard pointed to us un izard (a mountain goat native to the Pyrénées and similar to an ibex). We leaped in the bed of torrents from stone to stone, we hiked, we observed nature, we listened to Bernard enraptured...We learned about plaques tectoniques, the big crash of two of them which produced les Pyrénées, the fact that the area at the time had been un océan (which explains the numerous fossiles d' animaux marins found in the roches). We heard the legend of Pyrène, the daughter of the King of Cerdagne, with whom Hercules fell in love, and how he created the Pyrénées as a worthy tomb for his beloved after her death....In brief, Bernard enchanted us all morning with his knowledge and his good spirits.

Mercredi à Luz, la neige, les champions

2008-03-19T16:40:00.000-07:00

Wednesday is traditionally a day off for French children, but le Collège des Trois Vallées holds some classes, as they have to share several specialists with two other towns, and scheduling becomes difficult over only four days of school.
Il a neigé!!!!!! (It snowed!!!!!)
We came to le collège for three morning classes, after which we took the group to explore the local Eglise fortifiée des Templiers, a fortified Templar church: a defense wall surrounds an enclave of land around the church, where the villagers would come for refuge during raids from Spanish brigands.
Students then went to their respective families, some to ice skate, and later go to the local bowling establishment.
The big news have been first the ski accident of François Thevenet, who was hosting Jordan. Today François came out of the hospital and rejoined his family, and Jordan came to have lunch at my sister's with us, before going back to his family, at l' Hôtel de la Brèche de Roland (the whole region is seeped in the legends of Charlemagne, who passed les Pyrénées at this spot with the Sarraceens on his heels, and whose nephew Roland of the Chanson de Roland's fame opened the mountain with his sword to let Charlemagne and his knights pass through) .
François is now well, but his family had quite a scare.
The other big news is that the snow boarding team of le Collège des trois Vallées is now Champion de France! Needless to say, I am very proud of my nephew Ambroise and of the Collège! This is quite a feat, because the Collège is quite small (only 6 classes) and competed against largest collèges such as the one from Chamonix, which boats the Mont Blanc' s slopes!
We are all celebrating!!!!

A Lourdes

2008-03-19T02:38:00.000-07:00

Today is our visite à Lourdes, and we pick up our pique-nique lunches and board the bus. A very agréable ride through la vallée takes us there. We first visit le château médiéval, a little over a thousand years old, and built on the remnants of a Roman fort. It is a vast enclave containing many buildings, all very well preserved, a parade grounds (we imagined it filled with chevaux et chevaliers, keeping Tony in mind!), a botanical garden full of herbs, plants and flowers known in those days (we remember the Cloisters...)
Le château also contains le musée des Pyrénées, with une magnifique collection of everyday life artifacts and implements, costumes, etc... Le château domine la vallée, and stayed impregnable throughout its history because of its situation. The view from the top of the keep is unbelievable!
It is then time to walk down to les Sanctuaires et la Grotte miraculeuse, a nice walk where kitsch religious objects capture our interest! We arm ourselves with little bottles to be able to bring miraculous water back to NYC.
I want to add, for all the catholic families, that le Pape Bénédict announced that all pilgrims who would come to Lourdes in this 2008 Jubilée year (which marks the 150th anniversary), would earn indulgence plénière (Lachlan asked if this would extend to the whole family, and was told it would...)
This was a time of reflection for all of us, of asking questions, of enjoying moments de paix intérieure, and we all came back refreshed from the experience.
Students earned an hour of free time (their behavior around the sanctuaries and the pilgrims in prayer having been exemplaire), which they promptly spent exploring Lourdes ' chocolate offerings.

Une galerie de portraits

2008-03-17T15:16:00.000-07:00

Here is where I will post portraits of the children, as I download pictures from everyone's camera! So far my contributors are Tracy, Bennett (and I), but more photographers are eager to share! Enjoy!

Le premier jour au collège

2008-03-17T13:14:00.001-07:00

Having had to wake up early to be ready for the school bus, many of us are treated to a wonderful ride through les montagnes to reach le Collège de Luz. As le groupe gathers in the courtyard, we get our schedules, and after a half-hour of debriefing with Tracy and me, students will visit the school, and then, in groups of three, attend regular classes. They experience Anglais, Français, Espagnol, mathématiques, physique, techno(logie), histoire et géographie, navigating through the three school buildings, until recess in the vast courtyard. The view over the mountain tops from many of the classrooms is unbelievable!
After recess, we meet as a group again, to refine the presentation we will make to the English classes as part of the whole school international project of research on water: we will present in French(!) about water in NYC, and the seventh graders brought all the documents with them to share with our whole group. After much brainstorming, we have a plan, we practice, and we feel ready for tomorrow's presentation, armed with some books and materials we brought with us to share. The English classes will present to us about water in the Pyrénées.
At lunch time, we find le menu du jour posted: salade mixte avec noix et jambon de pays (mixed salad with walnuts and local prosciutto), canard à l'orange (!) avec pommes dauphines (duck in orange sauce with dauphine potatoes, a great success), fromage, pomme au four sauce au chocolat (baked apple with chocolate sauce).....Teachers have lunch in the teachers' room, with wine!
The rest of the day, students follow their classes and Tracy and I visit Luz, which boasts l' Eglise et le Château des Templiers, and le Gave d'Héas, the little torrent which continues to flow rapidly down the valley to the Usine Hydro-Electrique de Pranières.
May I mention that at this point, every French adult in the town who has encountered one of our students goes on and on about how wonderful they all are. A couple of them might not come back, as they are about to be legally adopted!

Nous sommes dans les Pyrénées

2008-03-16T10:59:00.000-07:00

Oui! Nous sommes dans les Pyrénées! After a wonderful morning packing, and a memorable métro ride to gare Montparnasse with all our luggage (plus all the candy, chocolate and other edibles we purchased in countless pâtisseries and maisons du chocolat, and all the gifts of dubious taste we will bring back as souvenirs), Tracy and the students went back to le Jardin du Luxembourg with un pique-nique to wile away the hours before the departure of our train! I stayed behind to guard the luggage, and it was a good thing, as security in Paris is very tight, and I was approached in turn by Paris police, national police, and the army, about the mound of luggage in front of me....Le TGV was as imposing and wonderful as expected, and we flew to the Pyrénées!....
Having slept late this morning after leaving each child in the capable hands of their host family, and having finally got the internet connection to work, we took Bennett to City Hall to witness the voting for les Elections Municipales, and he met there le Conseiller Général, and took photographs of the event. He went ice-skating at the municipal rink, where he met Rukiya, Peter and Kimberley...Later this afternoon, he was invited to go to the counting of the votes, and astonished everyone with his mature questions on the party system in France, and the different affiliation of the candidates he met...
Photos will be added as soon as Tracy returns from Luz, where they all went to give fresh clothing to my nephew Ambroise, who is a member of the snowboarding team entering the National Competitions!
To all of you who have not heard from your child, all are having a wonderful time. We have not lost a single one of them!!!!!! Remember that no news is good news, that no matter what it looks like they do love you, but life here has taken quite an interesting turn, and frankly, there is no time!!!!!!!!
Bonne nuit, Brooklyn!

Saint-Germain-des-Prés et Saint-Sulpice

2008-03-16T10:15:00.001-07:00

After a short métro ride, we get down at Gare Montparnasse and walk down la rue de Rennes to Saint-Germain-des-Prés, where students get a short lesson on existentialisme et l' après-guerre (Jean-Paul Sartre et Simone de Beauvoir are mentioned but not expected to be remembered). We continue to Eglise Saint-Sulpice, where a little square with a magnificent fountain beckons. Kids take off their jackets and start a game of catch until it is time to move on to le Jardin de Luxembourg (which is closed at this early evening hour), and as stomachs now lead, we meander through the ancient part of Paris, glancing at le Panthéon, climbing the steep little streets of la Montagne Sainte-Geneviève, the Patron Saint of Paris, to la rue Mouffetard of rowdy students' fame.
After much discussions about dinner ("I would really love to taste French Chinese food", confides Lachlan, seconded by several students!) we all agree we should have French food! The dinner is memorable, everyone ordering in French, several students more daring and stretching their palates...

Kirk et le mime!

2008-03-16T09:51:00.000-07:00

As we walk from la Tour Eiffel to catch le métro, we linger to admire Le Palais de Chaillot, and un mime catches our eyes...
As we laugh at his antics, he suddenly motions Kirk to come closer, and Kirk is happy to oblige...the scene which follows is the most delightful and humorous duet, with their interaction so wonderful and precise it cannot possibly be unrehearsed! Kirk dances and clowns around, le mime piping a little melody, the two of them magically communicating with a glance, a smile... The show culminates with the mime saluting Kirk and giving him a coin!........

La Tour Eiffel

2008-03-16T09:11:00.001-07:00

No visit to Paris is complete without a climb to the top of la Tour Eiffel. We line up to get our tickets, and after much waiting, we reach the second floor to take the last elevator to the top. Students brave their fears and we all arrive safely, walk around to see Gustave Eiffel' s little office and the stupendous view from above. (Bennett confesses that he has a fear of heights, and when I propose to stay with him below, he tells me: "I want to be able to say I went to the top!"). Oui, nos enfants ont beaucoup de courage!
We decide to walk down, and it is a fun experience, with much squeals of delight and singing of all our French songs!
Mais nous sommes fatigués....et nous rentrons!

Une promenade au Palais-Royal

2008-03-15T02:50:00.000-07:00

Our fearless guide and photographer, Tracy, in one of the countless moments she would prepare the next step as we were enjoying the present moment...We loved playing in the modern "Les Colonnes Buren" sculpture garden in the Palais-Royal, and we then strolled through the formal French gardens, admiring the precisely pruned trees forming walls on both sides and a canopy in the middle. In the arcades, we all got transported in an enchanted kingdom in the music box shop of two spinster sisters who patiently waited on a pair of students at a time in their diminutive boutique.

Le Louvre

2008-03-15T02:27:00.000-07:00

Le Louvre proved all I had told the students over the years, the largest museum in the world, the largest collection in the world, kilometers of galleries upon galleries, airy, made for walking and filling one's eyes with marvels from Babylone, Egypt, Greece and Rome, to Italian Renaissance and so much more we had no time to explore. We did the tourist circuit from la Victoire de Samothrace to la Joconde (Mona Lisa's French name), not forgetting la Vénus de Milo! We lingered in the Greek and Roman galleries, then through the Italian painting section, overwhelmed and admiring.
One of the highlights was La Poste! Yes, there is a post office in the museum, where we inquired in French about stamps for postcards and used the atm machine.

Paris est vert (Paris is green)

2008-03-15T01:57:00.000-07:00

One of the things which intrigued the students were the Paris-Vélo stations disseminated all over Paris. The City of Paris, in an effort to "green" the city, has installed a public bicycle network. You can rent a bicycle for a nominal fee (a couple of euros for the first hour) and return it when you are done in another location. We saw people everywhere, day and night, using these bicycles. Of course we all wanted to have a bike ride, but traffic in Paris semed a little too brisk for us to risk it! This photo is for Ms Villas, la Reine du Vert!

Le Quartier Latin, et le couscous

2008-03-13T21:35:00.000-07:00

From Notre Dame le Quartier Latin is a hop and a skip away, across the Seine on the Pont Saint Michel, whose fontaine et statue we can see from afar. Les crèpes having given us a new lease on life, we explore le Quartier under a very fine drizzle. Temperature is quite lovely, and we stroll through the medieval narrow streets, circling the majestic Sorbonne, then spending a half-hour in one of the great bookstores in Paris, where the teachers are eager to browse. Purchases are made (notebooks for the kids, who are told take notes, there will be a test, and are not sure whether we are serious), some livres de cuisine for me, and postcards for many of the kids.)
We are now seriously hungry, and hunt down the Morocan Couscous restaurant I know from students days...it is still there, bien sûr, and friendly as ever. Couscous au poulet et thé à la menthe for many of the kids, a couple of adventurous sould ordering merghez, the thin spicy sausages from North Africa, and teachers endulging in a delicious Tagine de poulet au citron et olives. It is time to bring our troupes back to the hotel, and we take le métro, give marching orders for the next morning, and let our vailliant explorers finally rest after 38 hours of awake and active time!

Bonne nuit, Brooklyn!

Les crèpes au nutella

2008-03-13T21:23:00.000-07:00

We settle on another snack (the first one was a visit to a pâtisserie for which we have no pictures, so intent was everyone in selecting and enjoying their éclair, tartelette aux fraises, pain au chocolat etc...)
Crèpes, being made in front of us as we wait...a highlight of the afternoon in the midst of all our emotions, our fatigue, the feeling that this adventure will be great, is great already, the gratitude and excitement washing over us...

Notre Dame de Paris

2008-03-13T21:13:00.000-07:00

Notre Dame towers above us, dwarfing the island, and students remember rudiments of 6th grade History and Tony's name in one breath! yes, Allie, those are called buttresses, and yes, this is Gothic architecture at its best!

La Seine et l'Ile Saint-Louis

2008-03-13T21:03:00.000-07:00

La promenade continue! Nous sommes fatigués, but no one is willing to give up! Une pause near the Seine, with a view of Ile Saint-Louis where we are directing our steps, and a brief reading of a Général de Gaulle proclamation of thanks for all the troops from north Africa, Africa and Asia who served vaillantly in the Second World War. We need a snack is the general consensus...

Les Marchés de Paris

2008-03-13T20:49:00.000-07:00

Never one to deny anyone a shopping opportunity, I let the students explore le marché de la Bastille, where a lesson in système métrique and currency conversion follows....I purchase fleur de sel in vast quantities, and students load up with t-shirts, some fruit, tacky jewelry, and Russian nesting dolls. The displays of cheese and meats attract worthy interest! (yes, chickens do have feet and beaks, and rabbits, well, look skinned...who knew?)

Le déjeuner, dans un bistro

2008-03-13T20:43:00.000-07:00

Lunch is a feast of pâtes au saumon, soupe à l'oignon, tartines de fromage de chèvre chaud avec salade mesclun, moussaka, et bien sûr, le coca, l'orangina, l'eau minérale......C'est délicieux!!!

La Place des Vosges

2008-03-13T20:29:00.000-07:00

The first walk takes us to Place des Vosges, whose classical architecture we admire, and as we promenade around the arcades, we are seduced by two watercolour artists painting the
Square , and we engage them, later purchasing several scenes of Parisian life to take home and remember... Choosing a lunch spot is fun and instructive, as we read countless menus in a never ending quest for escargots, and finally, hunger decides....

Sur la route de Paris....

2008-03-13T14:45:00.000-07:00

En route vers Paris, on the RER, Paris' fast metro system, we start speaking French! Mais oui, vraiment! We have to change train at Châtelet, to get off at Gare de Lyon, near our Hôtel, Le Bel Oranger.

Dans l'avion....

2008-03-13T14:28:00.000-07:00

We embarked, after leaving behind another snowglobe which had lodged itself inside the backpack of one of our adventurers, and could not pass security. A last green tea latte at Starbucks (for me), and we boarded the plane.

We finally took off and after the rounds of tasteless airline foods, we settled down to spending the next seven hours together! Time flew, kids kept busy and inobtrusive, and some even slept for five minutes at a time, when they were not playing their computer games or listening to their music.

L'Aventure commence!

2008-03-13T13:02:00.000-07:00

Our great French adventure started on Wednesday, as we all gathered in the bleak waiting area of Delta International departures...Excitement was mounting, last recommandations were being made, sweaters and snowglobes were being taking out of suitcases to bring their weight down ten pounds, furtive hugs were being distributed, and parents were no less excited than their kids!

Avant le départ (before departure)

2008-02-29T08:24:00.001-08:00

Excitement is mounting as the trip approaches, and 8th graders produced this little segment to get in the mood!
We are waving to all our friends and families, and promise to blog everyday, and publish many photos of all our adventures in Paris and the Pyrénées! Un petit bonjour en particulier à nos hôtes de Luz-Saint-Sauveur!